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Day 13: Be Mentored and Mentor Others

“Then Moses set out with Joshua his aide, and Moses went up on the mountain of God.”

Exodus 24:13

When we examine the life of Moses, one of Israel's most influential leaders, we discover that even he faced challenging circumstances. Due to his disobedience in striking the rock twice, Moses lost the opportunity to enter Canaan (Numbers 20). Knowing he wouldn't enter the Promised Land, he recognized the need to train a successor who would carry on his mission. This successor turned out to be Joshua. This connection was not coincidental. Joshua first appears in the book of Exodus during a crucial battle between Israel and the Amalekites. Moses entrusts Joshua with a mission, and without hesitation, he obeys the leader of the nation of Israel (Exodus 17:9-10). Moses was to deliver the Word of the Lord about this battle and the future of Israel's enemies to Joshua (Exodus 17:14). Joshua, in turn, would remind the people of past victories under God's leadership and fulfill the prophecy by cleansing the land of enemies.

Obedience was paramount for Joshua, and throughout His life, we see individuals fully dedicated to the tasks God assigned them. Later, Joshua joins other spies to explore the Promised Land. Upon returning from the mission, only he and Caleb were willing to obey God and enter Canaan. Though all twelve spies received the same promise and opportunities, their responses varied dramatically (Numbers 13).

Fueled by fear and cowardice, the ten spies resisted the Lord's will and doubted His promises, infecting the entire nation (Deuteronomy 9:22-24, Numbers 14:1-4, 20-38). The ten spies saw God in light of their current circumstances. In contrast, Caleb and Joshua trusted the Lord, possessed His spirit, and boldly entered the Promised Land (Numbers 14:6-10, 24, 30, 38; Joshua 1:10-11). They saw their circumstances in the light of the Almighty, Omnipotent, and Faithful God.

For many years, Moses served as a mentor to Joshua. Starting from Joshua's youth, he observed significant events, witnessed Moses' leadership and relationship with the Lord, and defended his mentor's authority zealously (Exodus chapter 33:11, 24:13, 32:15-20, Numbers 11:26-29).

Moses prepared Joshua for the day when he would be called the new leader and take responsibility for the people. This man would become the nation's new leader so they would not wander and drift away from God, the man in whom the Spirit of the Lord truly dwelt (Numbers 27:15-23). Moses recognized his potential, courage, and passion (Numbers 27:15-17). He imparted his authority, skills, and experience to Joshua. He declared Joshua the new leader of Israel before the people (Numbers 27:20-22, Deuteronomy 31:1-13). Moses inspired and persuaded the people, preparing them that their time was over and that a new leader would take their place, with whom the Lord would also be with them and through whom He would fulfill His promise. In doing so, he did everything possible to ensure that Joshua would be seen as a leader from the Lord. (Deuteronomy 31:1-3). As the leader of Israel, Moses was open before Joshua, his successor, teaching him to walk before the Lord, who reveals the nation's future, thus preparing him for a leadership filled with trials and challenges (Deuteronomy 31:14-29). Moses did much to nurture Jesus as a leader of God so that his dream of the Promised Land could be realized, even though he did not see it. Thus, the promise of the Lord was fulfilled through the calling of Joshua's son.

Under Moses' mentorship, Joshua became a strong and steadfast leader, fulfilling the Lord's commands and leading the people to possess the land (Joshua 11:15, 1:16-18). However, unlike Moses, Joshua didn't leave behind a successor who would continue passing on the Word of the Lord to the people. Despite Moses' instructions and warnings, a generation that did not know the Lord arose after Joshua's death, leading to spiritual decline (Judges 2:6-13, 21:25).

“Success without a successor equals defeat.”

John Maxwell

Reflection Questions:

1. Who is your successor? Who are you preparing so they can fulfill the calling from the Lord?

2. How are you mentoring your successor? How are you training him to fulfill his calling from the Lord?

3. Draw insights from Moses' example as Joshua's mentor and decide on specific aspects you'd like to implement or improve.

4. Who is your mentor? How obedient are you to the Lord and your mentor?

5. Look at the example of Joshua’s servant heart as a mentee of Moses; how does this play out in your life? What would you like to change or apply?

Prayer:

1. For mentors to be filled with wisdom and the Spirit of God.
2. For the next generation of leaders to walk in humbleness and gentleness.
3. For South Asia Big Region – may they see multiplication of teams and disciples in the world of sport, play, and fitness.